Marieta Velikova

Biography

I received an undergraduate degree in economics and French from People's Friendship University of Russia, an M.A. in Financial Economics, and Ph.D. in Applied Economics from Mississippi State University. I teach graduate and undergraduate economics, international business and global honors courses and lead the Center for Global Citizenship. I have led Belmont students on 25 study abroad programs all over the world. My research interests range from deposit insurance to deregulation of natural gas market to economics education and the topic of belonging. I am active in the business community being a member of the Nashville Chamber of Commerce International Business Advisory Council. I have also served as the president of the board of directors for Sister Cities Nashville. Under my leadership, SCN created the first-ever “Nashville in Belfast” project sharing music, food, entrepreneurship, business initiatives, and educational exchanges between the two cities. For being an active community leader and volunteer, I have been nominated for Top 30 under 30 & Top 40 under 40 by Nashville Business Journal, and Nashville Emerging Leaders Award by Nashville Chamber of Commerce. I have also served as Vice-President of the TN World Affairs Council. I love Nashville and consider it home being originally from Western Siberia, Russia. Outside of work, I cheer on the Predators, and visit Belcourt Theater, Ryman Auditorium, and Oz Nashville. What makes Nashville a special place is a strong sense of community, and, therefore, I want to bring my time, energy, and knowledge along with experience to make it a better place for every resident despite socioeconomic status, ethnicity, background, profession or religion.